Many people have grown up familiar with the popular magpie nursery rhyme, One for Sorrow, Two for Joy, which suggests that the number of magpies spotted at any one time can predict either good or bad luck.
The most widely recited version is:
One for sorrow,
Two for joy,
Three for a girl,
Four for a boy,
Five for silver,
Six for gold,
Seven for a secret,
Never to be told.
The exact origins of the magpie rhyme are unclear, but it almost certainly stems from ornithomancy, the ancient practice of interpreting omens from bird behaviour. Many sources claim that the earliest recorded version of the rhyme appeared in 1777 in a note within John Brand’s Observations on Popular Antiquities of Great Brtain. The Origin of our Vulgar and Provincial Customs, Ceremonies, and Superstitions.
John Brand, an English antiquarian and Church of England clergyman, was appointed Secretary to the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1784. His book explored various folk traditions, and the term “popular antiquities” later evolved into what we now call folklore, a term coined by William John Thoms in 1846.
However, the claim that Brand’s 1777 work contains the magpie rhyme is incorrect. While the book does describe the chatter of the magpie (or “mag-pye”) as an omen of dire calamity or great misfortune, there is no recorded version of the rhyme itself.
The rhyme actually appeared in a later edition of Popular Antiquities, published in 1842. This edition was significantly expanded and annotated by Sir Henry Ellis, a distinguished English librarian and antiquarian who served as Principal Librarian at the British Museum. In it, Ellis references a different 18th-century source; Samuel Johnson and George Steevens’s 1778 supplement to their edition of The Plays of William Shakespeare.
It is in this book’s appendix that a note written by the Revd Henley contains the rhyme, which appears to have led to the confusion over its earliest recording.
The magpie is called in the west to this hour, a magatipie, and the import of the augury is determined by the number of these birds that are seen together: “One for sorrow: Two for mirth: Three for a wedding: Four for death.”
In 1846 the rhyme was added to Proverbs and Popular Saying of the Seasons by Michael Aislabie Denham, an English merchant and collector of folklore.
Five for heaven,
Six for hell,
Seven for the devil, his own self.
Yet another longer version is to be found in Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable:
One’s sorrow,
Two’s mirth,
Three’s a wedding,
Four’s a birth,
Five’s a christening,
Six a dearth,
Seven’s heaven,
Eight is hell,
And nine’s the devil his old self.
Another version was written for the popular children’s TV programme Magpie which ran from 1968 to 1980 and replaced many of the older regional variations of the rhyme. The theme tune was composed and played by the Spencer Davis Group under the alias The Murgatroyd Band, just after Steve Winwood had left to join the supergroup Blind Faith with Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker, and Ric Grech.
One for sorrow,
Two for joy,
Three for a girl,
Four for a boy,
Five for silver,
Six for gold,
Seven for a secret never to be told,
Eight for a wish,
Nine for a kiss,
Ten for a bird,
You must not miss.
The song starts off similar to original rhymes but had an additional tenth bird that was not to be missed; in this case that was of course the next episode of the series.
Although all these songs and rhymes are most often associated with magpies, they can also be used to count other corvids such as jackdaws, ravens and crows, particularly in America where magpies are not as common.
Do you know any other variations of the magpie rhyme? Let us know in the comments below.
83 responses
There’s a version by a comedian called John Finnemore that goes up to a 1000. I can’t remember the whole rhyme (LOL) but here’s some of it:
One for sorrow
Two for joy
Three for a girl
Four for a boy
Five for silver
Six for gold
Seven for a secret
never to be told
Eight for a wish
Nine for a kiss
Ten for a chance
you must not miss
Eleven for a wasp
Twelve for a bee
Thirteen for a coffee
Fourteen for tea
Fifteen for a pencil
Sixteen for a pen
Seventeen to hear
these options once again
Eighteen for pepper
Nineteen for salt
Twenty for an accident
in which you were not at fault
Twenty one for Jerry
Twenty two for Tom
Twenty three – where are all these
magpies coming from?
Twenty five no seriously
Thirty this is weird
Forty eight from where have all these
magpies suddenly appeared?
Sixty two stop counting
Seventy just run
Ninety nine the revolution
of the magipies has begun
Two hundred no more sorrow
Five hundred no more fears
One thousand for how long
the empire of the magpies will last
in years
Here is the full rhyme:
One for sorrow
Two for joy
Three for a girl
Four for a boy
Five for silver
Six for gold
Seven for a secret
never to be told
Eight for a wish
Nine for a kiss
Ten for a chance
you must not miss
Eleven for a wasp
Twelve for a bee
Thirteen for a coffee
Fourteen for tea
Fifteen for a pencil
Sixteen for a pen
Seventeen to hear
these options once again
Eighteen for pepper
Nineteen for salt
Twenty for an accident
in which you were not at fault
Twenty one for Jerry
Twenty two for Tom
Twenty three – where are all these
magpies coming from?
Twenty five no seriously
Thirty this is weird
Forty eight from where have all these
magpies suddenly appeared?
Sixty two stop counting
Seventy just run
Ninety nine the revolution
of the magipies has begun
Two hundred no more sorrow
Five hundred no more fears
One thousand for how long
the empire of the magpies will last
in years
I was working in Germany in the early 2000s….I came home one day to a terrible noise at the end of my street, as I drove past the tree I spotted tons of magpies, so i stopped and started to count….I had to stop at….33!! There were more but I was losing count….As you can imagine the noise was deafening…all I can assume is that they had been distrubed from the nearby wood……never seen so many before , or so many since…..Im gutted the ryhme seems to stop at 20 ….I would love to know what it may have meant….maybe the start of that covid revolution after all :-D))
I can’t find the version you’re talking about, that goes to twenty. Could you share it?
I think its this One :
One for sorrow,
Two for joy,
Three for a girl,
Four for a boy,
Five for silver,
Six for gold,
Seven for a secret,
Never to be told.
Eight for a tail the stars have spun
Nine for a gate that can’t be undone
Ten for a river of forgotten lore
Eleven for a key to the spectral door
Twelve for a mirror that reflects the night
Thirteen for a beast that lives in spite
Fourteen for a realm beyond our reach
Fifteen for a speech no tongue can teach
Sixteen for a dream trapped in stone
Seventeen for the old gods hollow moan
Eighteen for the abyss that gazes back
Nineteen for the cosmic formless wrack
Twenty for a magpies final verse in a universe where shadows converse
The end of the rhyme
The start of the dread
Where not a single word is said.
Surely that would be a covid revolution!!
Make some more up and post them, that’s all the rest are.
First World problems I guess. I once experience something similliar to this when i left my house to see 2 magpies having intercourse in my garden tree. That many magpies is unsafe think about all th
There is also a lovely folk song called “Magpie” by a group called “The Unthanks”, you can find it on a popular video streaming site..
One’s for sorrow, two’s for joy
Three’s for a girl and four’s for a boy
Five’s for silver, six for gold
Seven’s for a secret never told
Devil, devil, I defy thee
Devil, devil, I defy thee
Devil, devil, I defy thee
Oh, the magpie brings us tidings
Of news both fair and foul
She’s more cunning than the raven
More wise than any owl
For she brings us news of the harvest
Of the barley, wheat, and corn
And she knows when we’ll go to our graves
And how we shall be born
One’s for sorrow, two’s for joy
Three’s for a girl and four’s for a boy
Five’s for silver, six for gold
Seven’s for a secret never told
Devil, devil, I defy thee
Devil, devil, I defy thee
Devil, devil, I defy thee
She brings us joy when from the right
Grief when from the left
Of all the news that’s in the air
We know to trust her best
For she sees us at our labour
And she mocks us at our work
And she steals the eggs from out of the nest
And she can mob the hawk
One’s for sorrow, two’s for joy
Three’s for a girl and four’s for a boy
Five’s for silver, six for gold
Seven’s for a secret never told
Devil, devil, I defy thee
Devil, devil, I defy thee
Devil, devil, I defy thee
The priest, he says we’re wicked
For to worship the devil’s bird
Ah, but we respect the old ways
And we disregard his word
For we know they rest uneasy
As we slumber in the night
And we’ll always leave out a little bit of meat
For the bird that’s black and white
One’s for sorrow, two’s for joy
Three’s for a girl and four’s for a boy
Five’s for silver, six for gold
Seven’s for a secret never told
Unfortunately my late husband was attacked by a Magpie in Portugal. We were walking along a tree lined road in a small town. We believe a nest might have had young in it and the magpie was defending those young. It swooped down and pecked my husband’s head with such force it penetrated his thick baseball cap and cut his head. The locals told us it wasn’t uncommon. Beware!
This is very sad, I’m sorry to read this about your late husband. I seen 17 magpies yesterday in Wolverhampton, I was on the way to my uncles funeral. Heaven knows what that many mean . God bless you my love🙏❤️
I remember my mother saying, she learnt the rhyme with crows on the fence not magpies, (I know they come from same family).
I know 3 for a girl and 4 for a boy and I’m sticking to that rhyme, as I did see 3 when I had my daughter (I would see 1 and 2 as well same with my other two children) I seen 4 with my youngest son, with my middle child was 4 or sometimes 3 but not having or lost a twin, now they older I can understand why.
It’s all just a matter of chance.. and odds. Seeing 1 or11 magpies at eny one time doesn’t mean or pradickt eny thing!!
Looking across the road and saw 12 magpies on a house roof opposite and chimneys chatting and messing about and running amok!Bradford , West Yorkshire.
My grandmother (born 1894 in County Durham) used to say:
One for sorrow
Two for mirth
Three for a death
Four for a birth
And five for Old Nick’s luck
I read a book we’re they said
One for sorrow
Two for mirth
Three for a funeral
Four for birth
Five for death
Six for church
Seven for a secret not to be told
Eight for heaven
Nine for the devil his own self
For seven I seem to have been taught a different line…
“And seven means you’ll never grow old”
…which was the end of the rhyme (luckily I’ve never seen seven magpies or above at once)
I saw 6 in my garden today! For 3 years it was only ever 2. I felt privileged. I’ve only ever seen 4 in my 50 years up until now, and there they were right in my backyard as I happened to.look out. Xx
This rhyme in all of its iterations is perfect for a novel I’m writing, and my finding it today was totally serendipitous. Thanks to all who posted.
Your novel wouldn’t be about Atticus Pünt, would it?
One for sorrow
two for joy
three for a girl
four for a boy
five for England
six for France
seven for a fiddler
eight for a dance
nine for a secret that should never be told
ten for ??????????
I just can’t remember the last line I was taught. Grrh!
I was taught
1 for sorro
2 for joy
3 for a girl
4 for a boy
5 for silver
6 for gold
7 for a secret never been told
8 for love ?
9 for marriage ?
10 for baby in golden carage xxx
The world is strange and magical
I was listening to “choux pastry heart” Corrine Bailey-Rae it’s a hauntingly beautiful song. I love Magppies and Crows and Ravens they are my name shortened. I found the symmetry of the world intriguing that I came to look for the rest of the rhyme as I grew up in the Caribbean and we sang it. But I could not remember a few lines so Google then I saw this “birdspot” a greenish tint so I clicked and read all the versions then scrolled to the bottom to see if anyone had commented. My comment stopped at you Cheryl and it made my skin prickle and hairs stand on end. I know a Cheryl I texted her yesterday! She’s an Angel. But also you wrote the exact version I learned as a child in the Caribbean. I’m Jay. Where did you learn your version?
I’ve just seen Nineteen in a tree.
Does the Rhyme go that far ?
There is only one variation I know of that goes up that high
1 for sorrow 2 for mirth
3 for a wedding 4 for a birth
5 for silver 6 for gold
7 for a secret never to be told
8 for the tale that the stars have spun
9 for a gate that can’t be undone
10 for a river of forgotten lore
11 for a key to the spectral door
12 for a mirror reflecting the night
13 for a beast that lives in spite
14 for a heaven that none can reach
15 for a lesson that none can teach
16 for a dreams trapped in stones
17 for the gods hollow moans
18 for the abyss that gazes back
19 for the knowledge that which we lack
20 for a magpies final verse, In a realm where shadows converse
This may be slightly inaccurate because I am going off of memory though
That is hauntingly beautiful to me for some reason wheres that from in the world by chance?
I totally LOVE this “longest” version as it has a much more mystical slant to it as it gets higher.
Thank you for sharing
Saw 15 yesterday
We were told it through buzzards( vultures) in the sky, nothing else. Old Native American tales
on all of them, 1-6 is helpful.. the rest speak in riddles, no pun intended, that don’t help anyone or anything at all
Thanks, just found this one, which is the best rendition I think.
I saw 20+ the other day too many to count accurately as they didn’t stay still but was amazed to see so many in 2 trees in my garden!!!
I saw two magpies, read all of the comments, and have never experienced such joy.
Interestingly, I’ve heard this rhyme with ravens rather than magpies, but then I live in a part of the US where magpies are rare.
Ravens perched on a single branch
What do you numbers foretell of chance?
One for sorrow
Two for mirth
Three for a wedding
And for four a birth
Five for rags
Six for gold
Seven for a secret
Never told
Eight for love
Nine for hate
Ten for a new friend at the gate
Eleven for a house
Twelve for sails
Lucky thirteen for secret spells!
Apparently, this is supposed to foretell that you will soon…
Have bad news or sadness
Have good news or cause to be happy
Hear of someone you know getting engaged or married
Hear of someone you know getting pregnant
Be poor in the near future
Make money in the near future
Commit a crime or transgression in the near future
Fall in love or infatuation
Learn to hate someone
Make a new friend
Get a job or situation that allows you to stay near your current home
Get a job or situation that requires moving to a new place or traveling
Learn magic or, as my mom suggested, this might also refer to making your own career rather than following the norm.
(Witches, Druids, Magi and such were once considered outside of normal society, after all, so this meeti just mean doing your own thing.)
When I see a single magpie, I have always said to it “hello Maggie, where’s your mate?
That’s the correct response! Negates the bad luck of a single bird.
In Cornwall, where I live, we say: “Good morning Mr Magpie. And how’s your lady wife?” 🙂
When I see a magpie i always salut to it
Me to
Good morning Mr Magpie and how’s the lady wife? My mother (81 yes old) still says this every time she see’s just 1.
Your mum sounds like a smart person my mum says the exact same my dad salute’s ? him 70 and 80 year old and has did it from when a can remember
I do too was something me n my family all do to cancel the bad luck x
But also if one magpie seen by 2 say this ryme one magpie seen by 2 brings luck to me and you and it cancel it too x
Our version was
If seen by, it won’t come true